1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to Internet computers/infrastructures; and, more particularly, to search engines.
2. Related Art
Search engines are common gateways to the world of Internet. Users that are unable to find what they want on the Internet often use search engines to identify a web link that is helpful. The users may search the Internet with a wide variety of interests such as business, engineering and scientific research, as well as home-based general/personal interests. Search engines usually select web links based upon a search keyword (or, search string) and rank order selected web links to the user based on relative popularity of the various web links.
Users typically have certain expectations when they are searching for web links. A user might be looking for specific information, a specific organization or company web links, etc. Often, what they get when looking for specific information or organizations are vaguely related web links containing information unrelated to their expectations.
A list of popular websites having words in web link title that are related to a user's search string or keywords often pops up at the top of the search results list. Yet, these top search results often have no relation to the information user is looking for. Pages after pages of search results can be scanned where the user gets the same unwanted search results. Often, a user has a few areas of serious interests that the user is most often searching or interested in. Unaware of user's interests, the search engine delivers web links that are vaguely associated with user's sphere of interest.
For example, a user may enter a search string ‘top bicycle riders’ looking for a list top ranked bicycle riders in world. The search engine is unaware of user's sphere of interest (that is, the user lives in Europe, likes bicycle racing, and that the user is looking for web sources related to top-ranked competitive bicycle riders in the world). By being unaware, the search engine delivers web links of top bicycle magazines, bicycle stores, bicycle resellers and renters, bicycle prices, bicycle touring in a remote holiday resort in the Caribbean, etc. Unable to find what he/she is looking for, the user clicks on ‘next’ button again and again, getting same unsatisfying results. A few pages into the list of search results, the focus of search result becomes so distant that the user abandons the search and either enters a new keyword search string or gives up on the search and seeks other alternatives, hoping to have better luck using another approach.
These and other limitations and deficiencies associated with the related art may be more fully appreciated by those skilled in the art after comparing such related art with various aspects of the present invention as set forth herein with reference to the figures.